The present invention relates generally to protective apparel for the lower leg and knee, and more specifically to a leg protection system which can be worn over the knee only or worn as a complete leg protection system covering the knee and the lower leg. The cover is universal, in that it may be worn on either the left or right leg individually or on both legs.
There are many occasions when a person""s lower legs and knees are exposed to conditions which may cause the person""s clothing to become dirty or damaged, prompting a person to wear protective covering. As most homeowners and landscape workers are well aware, many yard and gardening tasks such as grass cutting, weed whacking, leaf blowing, or raking, result in dirt, twigs, leaves, grass cuttings, and other outdoor debris being deposited on the lower legs and knees of the person performing the tasks or possibly staining the person""s clothes. In addition, protective covering provides additional padding and comfort to a person who is resting or supporting his or her weight on their legs or knees while performing outdoor tasks as well as indoor tasks, such as laying flooring or cleaning floors.
On other occasions a person""s lower legs and knees are exposed to conditions which may cause injury to the person and/or damage to their clothing. Operating a string trimmer is especially hazardous because of the exposed rotating cutting string. The exposed cutting string has been known to occasionally hit the leg of the operator of the string trimmer, thus causing injury to the operator""s leg. In addition, protective covering serves to protect the person""s legs and clothes during painting or other chemically damaging operations, such as spraying a herbicide or pesticide.
Protective guards designed to protect the leg, knee, or shin are commonly used in sports. Full length protective guards are conventionally used by catchers in softball or baseball where protection of the entire lower leg is important. Other sports such as soccer, which have protective guards for the shin, and volleyball, which have protective padding for the knees, utilize fixed length protective guards for specific regions of the leg. However, such protective guards are generally made of relatively hard, inflexible or bulky material and is not well suited for gardening or other landscaping activities.
Other types of leg protection coverings are widely available which protect the lower leg and the foot in a one piece covering. Examples of this kind of leg protective covering range from U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,778 for protecting a wearer""s leg and foot from injury, to U.S. Pat. No. 4,057,853, which discloses snake proof leggings made of steel mesh to cover the lower leg and foot, to U.S. Pat. No. 5,970,525, which describes a leg guard apparatus that covers the leg from above the knee to the foot. However, none of these protective coverings offer a single leg protection system with a selectively attachable knee protective cover and lower leg protective cover, which allows a user the ability to wear a knee protective cover by itself or together with the lower leg protective cover.
A leg protection system for selectively covering a person""s lower leg and knee comprising a first protective cover and a second protective cover selectively attachable to each other to define a single leg protection system. The first protective cover is adapted to cover the front and side portions of a wearer""s knee. The first protective cover has a top edge, a bottom edge and a pair of lateral edges extending between the top and bottom edges. The first protective cover has a top portion and a bottom portion, whereby the top and bottom portions are formed of a flexible material for generally fitting the contour of the knee. The bottom portion has a first releasable strap assembly adapted to extend behind the wearer""s leg to operatively attach the first protective cover over the knee. The second protective cover is adapted to cover the front and side portions of a wearer""s lower leg. The second protective cover has a top edge, a bottom edge and a pair of lateral edges extending between the top and bottom edges. The second protective cover is formed of a flexible material for generally fitting the contour of the lower leg. The second protective cover has a second releasable strap assembly adapted to extend behind the wearer""s lower leg to operatively attach the second protective cover to the lower leg. The first and second protective covers are selectively attachable adjacent their respective bottom and top edges to define, when so attached, a single leg protective system.